by JACK LINDEN
“I see no reason why an employer should not be able to tell you to work from 6 a.m. until 10 a.m. and then have you come back and work from 6 p.m. until 10 p.m. After all, isn’t that an eight-hour day? It is the employer’s right to work you 10 hours a day with no additional pay. It is a job isn’t it?”
If you find those remarks absurd, you are probably pro-union. If you don’t, you are probably against unions. As more and more states implement right-to-work laws, it is becoming evident that the common worker is losing his power in the work place. Unfortunately, most of the states implementing right-to-work laws are governed by the Republican Party. The very workers who elect these state leaders are the ones who would most likely benefit from protection by labor unions.
How many of us take for granted our work place rules and regulations? That eight-hour day with regular pay is something that labor unions fought for. In most industries, anything more than an eight hour day requires extra compensation, either in pay – one-and-a-half times normal rate – or time off. This rule was brought about by the influence of labor unions.
Many of us have benefited from medical insurance paid partially, or in some cases entirely, by the employer. Where would the average worker be today if he or she did not receive this benefit? Check with some of the elderly in stores such as Walmart, Sears or any other major retailer and ask why they are working. You will hear “for insurance and a little extra money.”
Labor unions have brought so many benefits to the common laborer. If you need to know why labor unions were even created, read a bit of American history prior to 1900. American workers revolted against the working conditions at that time. Read about the strikes and the suppression of those strikes by the companies and, in many instances, not only by local governments but the national government, as well.
Today, there are some rather disheartening statistics showing the average worker’s compensation has actually declined since 2000. While the workers’ compensation and buying power have stagnated, the profits of the corporations have skyrocketed. The disparity between middle-class wealth, which was created because of the demands of labor unions, and those in the upper class has increased enormously and is continuing to widen. And this widening gap is happening while more and more Republican-led state legislatures are implementing right-to-work laws.
It is apparent that the middle class in the United States is becoming poorer while the rich are becoming the super-rich. Are we going to see the society that Jacob Riis saw in his 1890 book “How the Other Half Lives”? Are we going to see the social ills of the 1880s and ’90s? Will we see, once again, National Guard units called out to put down strikes by workers demanding humane treatment? Are we willing to accept that the CEO of a corporation is paid thousands of times more than the average worker who makes the products? These are questions Americans need to be asking.
The workers of America made this country what it is today. But, no longer do corporations reward the laborer. Instead, they ship the work overseas for a higher profit. The machine is replacing the laborer when the job is not out-sourced. Yes, we still need labor unions. Unfortunately, too many people have forgotten what unions have done for all of us.
